BLUE ICE POOL

I’ve never been a big fan of pool liners. Vinyl pool liners always seemed to wrinkle up in my pools and they made my feet feel funny when I swam around (quite similar to swimming in an inflatable pool).  Some people claim that pool liners help keep a pool cleaner, but I've never found that to be the case.  The texture and the durability of pool liners has made me shy away from them.  For inground pools or individual lap pools, I prefer gunite or fiberglass pools.  However, if you’re stuck with a pool that requires a pool liner for whatever reason, fear not, this article will help you replace it when it starts to fall apart.

If you need to do a pool liner repair, make sure to get some people to help you install the new pool liner.

Pool liners need to be replaced if their colors start to fade or if they develop serious holes or wrinkles in them.  This can be caused by the harshness of swimming pool chemicals required to keep the pool water clean. A leaky pool liner is bad news for you as a pool owner. Not only will a leaking pool liner cost you a ton of money on your water bills but it could also seriously damage the foundation of your pool. Your pool could develop a serious case of mold or develop cracks and rust if you let too much water underneath the pool liner. Don’t leave swimming pool liners in the pool if they are endangering the pool’s integrity.

Replacing your pool liner is an easy process. If you sucker one of your friends or family members into helping you out (which shouldn’t be too hard since they owe you for all of those times they come over to mooch off your nice above ground swimming pool) it should only take a few hours. You could even make a fun day of it with a six pack of cold beers and some good music. You can still have a pool party even if you’re just working on the pool and not actually playing in it, right?

Anyway, you want to pick a nice warm day to work on your pool liner. You’ll be working with vinyl so temperature can play a huge factor in the work load. If it’s too cold outside you’re going to have a hard time manipulating the pool liner but if it is too hot you aren’t going to get any form out of it at all. A nice warm spring day is ideal for replacing either an above ground pool liner or inground pool liners.

 

Inground pool liner installation instructions.

Step by Step: Replacing Your Pool Liner

 

1. First thing’s first, you have to get rid of your old swimming pool liner. Use a utility knife to cut around the edges of the pool liner until you have successfully cut around the entire pool. Gather up and throw out the old liner.
2. Unscrew and remove the top cap and top rail holding the old liner in place. Don’t lose these parts because you are going to have to put them right back where you found them when you are done putting up the new pool liner.
3. Pools that use pool liners have retaining tracks to hold their pool liners in place. You want to lift that up and off the old liner. Remove any excess materials that may have been left over from your earlier cutting.
4. Check to see if you have anything you need to replace aside from the old pool liner. This could be the wall foam that’s used for support or it could be the bottom clip or bottom pad. If you find that they need replacing (and they probably do) you should replace them before installing the new pool liner.
5. Now that you’ve dismantled and tossed out the old pool liner and replaced all of the other stuff you needed to replace, you can go ahead and unwrap the new liner.
6. You and your friend need to stretch out the pool liner across the pool. You should be standing on one side of the pool (outside the pool) and your friend should stand on the opposite site (also on the outside of the pool.) Each of you will hold an end of the pool liner and move in unison around the pool locking it into place. Always keep the same amount of distance between the two of you.
7. After you’re locked the liner in place it is time to begin filling the pool. Use a garden hose to slowly introduce the water to the new pool liner. As you are filling the pool keep an eye out for wrinkles and bumps. You or your friend can stand inside the pool and use a broom to brush out any odd places while the other one stands on the outside of the pool making adjustments to how the liner is fitting.
8. As the water level rises, and before it reaches the skimmer, find the skimmer and cut out a hole for it in the liner.
9. Install all of the top rails and top caps you took off before and you are all done!

If you’re still unsure about how to replace your pool liner in standard inground swimming pools, you should consult an expert pool service. You can walk into any pool supplies store and ask them questions about how you might best go about installing above ground pool liners. They might even have some cheap pool liners for sale.